Hundreds of thousands Protest for Fifth Straight Week Against South Korean President

Hundreds of thousands of people have rallied in Seoul for a fifth straight week of protests against President Park Geun-hye, in the largest ongoing series of demonstrations in the country since the 1987 movement to democratise South Korea.

Ms Park’s presidency has been rocked by allegations that a close friend used her ties to the leader to meddle in state affairs and wield improper influence.

Prosecutors have indicted her friend, Choi Soon-sil, and are seeking to question the President about her role in the scandal.

Organisers said 800,000 people had gathered early on Saturday evening and expected a total of 1.5 million people to join by the end of the night.

Police declined to give an estimate of the crowd size but said 25,000 personnel had been dispatched to police the protest.

The protests have remained peaceful, and were marked by huge candle-lit rallies where activists and rock bands have entertained a diverse crowd of students, office workers, and young families.

Opposition seeks impeachment motion

The country’s largest opposition party said it would seek to propose an impeachment motion for vote as early as Friday and no later than December 9.

Some members of Ms Park’s conservative party have vowed to support the impeachment attempt.